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The Battle of Rafah was a military engagement between the Israel Defense Forces and the Egyptian Army in the final stage of the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. It was fought on January 3–8, 1949, just south of Rafah, today in the Gaza Strip. The battle was initiated by Israel as part of Operation Horev, on the backdrop of the Sinai battles just before. The Israelis were hoping to encircle all Egyptian forces in Palestine and drive them back to Egypt. The Golani and Harel brigades were allocated for the attack, with the 8th Brigade serving as the operational reserve and the Negev Brigade staging diversions. While the Israelis had great trouble to advance in their individual assaults, eventually a battalion-sized force managed to take a position on the road from Rafah to the Sinai Peninsula, effectively surrounding the Egyptian expeditionary force. However, by this time the Egyptians agreed to negotiate armistice and the Israeli political echelon therefore ordered all troops back. The battle of Rafah was the last major combat operation in the war and was followed by the armistice agreements with Egypt. ==Background== The Egyptian regular army invaded Israel on May 15, 1948 following Israel's Declaration of Independence the day before. The main Egyptian column moved up the coastal plain in the following days, stopping at Isdud and establishing its headquarters in Majdal.〔 After the creation of the Beit Hanoun wedge and other Israeli offensives in Operation Yoav, the Egyptian staff withdrew to Gaza and most of their forces concentrated in what is today the Gaza Strip. On December 22, 1948, the Israelis launched Operation Horev, with the objective of expelling all Egyptian forces from Palestine. The Israeli Southern Command, under Yigal Allon, planned to encircle the Egyptians from the Sinai Peninsula, without the knowledge of the General Staff. Due to international pressure however, Allon's forces retreated from the Sinai and prepared instead to encircle the Egyptians by capturing the positions south of Rafah. The Arab village Rafah was located on the border of Palestine and Egypt. To the south, there was a sand dune, followed by the coastal road and railway, followed by another sand dune, containing a Bedouin cemetery at the top (about 100 m above sea level). In the plateau between the dunes, the British built a large military base on both sides of the border in World War II.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Battle of Rafah (1949)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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